THE SUMMER SESSION kansan
A student newspaper serving KU
77th Year, No.4
Friday, June 21, 1968
LAWRENCE, KANSAS
Gun legislation
Coeds pass petitions
By Rees Roderick Journalism Camp Reporter
Journalism Camp Reporter Strict gun legislation is the theme of a petition circulated by three University of Kansas students this week.
Joanne Bono, Lancaster junior, Janet Schurig, Kansas City, Mo. senior, and Sharon Wahlmeier, Hugoton junior, began this independent drive to prove that there are people who are concerned with gun laws.
"We are individuals with a cause who hope to be influential in gaining firearm restrictions. It is necessary to show that we are interested since Senator Carlson is against gun laws," Miss Bono said, summarizing the three roommates' purpose for the petition.
AFTER THE death of Senator Robert Kennedy, the girls decided upon the idea of a petition. Before his death, they had not planned on any sort of action concerning weapon legislation.
Although the girls were allowed to set up booths in and in front of the Kansas Union and Strong Hall, they were not permitted to enter organized housing. While cavanvassing students' signatures, the roommates found that, although students were in favor of laws and willing to sign the petition, they did not go out of their way to sign the paper.
WHEN STUDENTS refused to
Seaver leads gun control
James Seaver, professor of history, has been appointed state chairman for the American Civil Liberties Union effort to promote adoption of strong federal gun-control legislation.
★ ★ ★
In accepting the chairmanship, Seaver said, "I'm deeply interested in this subject and I feel strongly that we need strong legislation to restrict interstate sale of firearms."
Seaver, a former amateur tennis star who once was the Jayhawk tennis coach, also directs the KU Western Civilization program.
sign the petitions, the girls asked for a reason or opinion about the gun legislation. Most of the pupils declined to answer and left
The petition contains a twopage summary of Miss Bono, Miss Schurig and Miss Wahlmeier's beliefs and facts proving the necessity of weapon registration. With data collected from the Kansas City Star and Newsweek, they showed that countries where firearms are not permitted or must be registered have much lower murder rates.
The ACLU states that it feels strong gun-control legislation is necessary to foster "the free and fearless debate on which our free society rests."
Besides registration for weapons, the statement calls for the possession of guns by minors, alcoholics, addicts, convicts and the mentally incompetent to be illegal. The conclusive remark in the petition is "As long as some people in the United States continue to disassociate freedom from responsibility, there must be regulation of their activities."
The trio will send the petition to Senator Frank Carlson, Senator James Pearson and Representative Larry Winn. The roommates had already sent letters to these men.
Political speech symposium is set
By Leslie Daniels Journalism Camp Reporter
A symposium of ethical points of politics and dissent will be conducted in the Forum Room of the Kansas Union June 27-28 beginning at 9:45 a.m.
"Each main speaker will present his own ideas on the ethics of politics and dissent. The speakers will talk about the problems of campaigns in a forty minute recital," Donn Parson, professor of speech communication and human relations, said.
"The speakers represent different fields in political thinking. Each one of the speakers will be followed by a panel of critic commentators who will question them and present their own opinions on the areas the speakers have discussed. After the panel discussion, the audience may ask questions of the speaker." he said
THE THURSDAY symposium will begin at 9:45 a.m. with opening remarks by Parson. Following
Parson will be Thomas R. Nilsen, professor of speech at the University of Washington. Nilsen is the author of "The Ethics of Speech Communications."
The afternoon session will begin at 1 p.m. with Sidney Hook, professor of philosophy of the New York University Graduate School. Hook is a prominent author, philosopher and critic. He
WEATHER
See SYMPOSIUM on page 3
Possible showers are forecast by the United States Weather Bureau for the weekend. It will be otherwise humid with the highs in the 90's and the low tonight near 70.
Prof studies LSD
Professor's Professor Series
A professor who is now concluding a study of the function of music in LSD therapy at the Veterans Administration Hospital in Topeka, was honored by KU recently.
E. Thayer Gaston, professor of music education and director of music therapy, was named by Chancellor W. Clarke Wescoe to one of the University's designated professorships, as a University Professor.
He joined the staff in 1937, set up the University's first curriculum for music therapy in 1948 and taught the first courses.
MUSIC THERAPISTS use music, he explains, as an entre. With music, they can persuade patients to change the behavior that got them into trouble, Dr. Gaston said, regardless of whether they sing, dance or play an instrument.
Mental illness weakens the usual lines of communication. "All we will ever know comes to us through our senses," Gaston said. "And music is the finest auditory art." Therefore, reality confronts a patient when he hears music chosen to suit his background.
The logic of music's therapeutic value can be cerv simlvy stated:
RESEARCHERS HAVE found music to be one of the few stimuli that LSD does not distort except to increase loudness. For this reason, it keeps the patient in touch with reality by helping him keep one foot on the ground during a supervised psychedelic trip.
Moreover, music therapy sometimes reaches withdrawn patients when words fail. For example, a
mute psychotic clapping his hands to music may be taking that all-important first step on the road to recovery.
Gaston's work at the Topeka V.A. Hospital has been financed by a Biomedical Science Support grant and a smaller grant from the National Institute of Mental Health.
HE EXPECTS the work in Topeka with music and LSD therapy combined to be ready for publication by late summer or early fall.
Recently, he edited "Music in Therapy," published in April as the first comprehensive book in its field, encompassing the work of 59 prominent therapists, clinicians, researchers and psychologists. The National Association for Music Therapy, Inc., receives all proceeds from its sale.
Music therapy combined with LSD therapy constitutes only a small segment of music therapy research, Dr. Gaston is quick to note.
Overall, music therapists agree on three principles:
- It establishes or reestablishes interpersonal relationships.
- It brings about self-esteem through self-actualization.
- It utilizes the unique potential of rhythm to energize and bring order.
Usually, music therapy ignores lyrics, which Gaston calls "an unimportant part of music." Generally, the words are used only with small children or patients who won't speak, he said, adding that stutterers don't stutter when they
See PROF STUDIES on page 6
E. THAYER GASTON